Delivery systems for secure distribution of printed material utilizing stations of lockable compartments are well known. A conventional delivery station comprises an array of compartments, such as mail boxes, each having a compartment door which includes a lockable latch. Access to a compartment through its respective door is restricted to persons who possess a key capable of operating the latch lock. Such mail box delivery stations are commonly found in many areas distributed throughout a typical multi-floor office building.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,698,630, entitled "Security System", issued on Oct. 6, 1987 to American Locker Group Incorporated which is hereby incorporated by reference, discloses a secure locker system wherein access to individual compartments within the locker's array of compartments is under electronic control and effected through entry of a multiple digit user code at a keyboard console. Each compartment door includes an addressing logic circuit controlling a solenoid operated locking mechanism and the logic circuits of all the compartments are connected in parallel to the console. A user access code entered at the console, which in effect represents the "key" to unlocking specific compartments, is processed and converted to a locker address value which then is considered by each logic circuit to determine if its respective compartment door should be unlocked.
This delivery system however suffers from the disadvantage of having a user recall his or her access code. Also, each locker compartment includes an addressing logic circuit which increases the cost and complexity of the overall construction of the locker, and it is necessary to manually set address identification data at each individual compartment of the locker. Furthermore, the American Locker Group Incorporated security locker is a stand alone unit and in the case where several of these lockers are in use within an office builiding, each locker must be updated separately, for example, when a new access code is to be programmed.